Thursday, May 01, 2008

I thought that sexual harassment only occurred when there was a power differential. Do 12 year old boys and girls have a power differential? I remember grab ass in the hallway as a 12 year old myself. One time it was rather traumatic because there were three guys and only me and no witnesses. Somehow, I survived, but according to this, other kids are traumatized for life:

The problem of sexual harassment from peers — which can include name-calling and unwanted touching in hallways and classrooms — is often largely dismissed as normal student behavior by school officials. However, the emotional toll of sexual harassment by school kids appears to be even worse than physical bullying, according to new research published this month in the journal Sex Roles.

I am all for putting a stop to indecent doings in hallways, however not every one is innocent of who they accuse as to being the indecent proposer, meaning that there are many who encourage this type of behaviour - and when the damage is done decide then to kick up a fuss.

Touching is less harassment, more assault. I wish the school districts could be honest about what is happening.

It reminds me of a story from a week ago involving a group of girls beating another girl in a school hallway, recording the event, and uploading it to Youtube. The school district seemed to think that the fact that the violence was taped was more of an issue than the fact that the violence itself occurred.